


Like Normal People

by Roiwiez



Series: Path to Forgiveness [1]
Category: Devil May Cry
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Dante Just Wants To Talk, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Post-DMC5, Sibling Rivalry, Vergil Refuses To Cooperate
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-31
Updated: 2020-08-31
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:20:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,412
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26214733
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Roiwiez/pseuds/Roiwiez
Summary: The sons of Sparda had always been locked in a heated rivalry since they were children.  Childish squabbles over who got to claim the top bunk, to life threatening clashes of their ideologies.  The brothers would fight over anything, and in all their years of fighting it was always done physically.  No matter how trivial or pointless the disagreement was, the brothers always came to blows.  Fighting was all the brothers knew, and while fighting alongside and against Vergil was all he ever wanted, Dante wanted to try something different.He wanted to try and talk things out at least once.  You know, like normal people do.
Relationships: Dante & Vergil (Devil May Cry)
Series: Path to Forgiveness [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1928215
Comments: 8
Kudos: 96





	Like Normal People

Down in the darkest depths of the underworld, a fierce battle has been raging on for what seems like forever. The ground is stained with blood, the dark is lit up with clashing steel and fire, the silence is broken with the sound of gunfire and demonic roars. Many would assume this battle was fueled by hatred and blood lust, but underneath every threat and insult, the two combatants wore smiles as they fought.

The sons of Sparda had always been locked in a heated rivalry since they were children. Childish squabbles over who got to claim the top bunk, to life threatening clashes of their ideologies. The brothers would fight over anything, and in all their years of fighting it was always done physically. No matter how trivial or pointless the disagreement was, the brothers always came to blows. Fighting was all the brothers knew, and while fighting alongside and against Virgil was all he ever wanted, Dante wanted to try something different.

He wanted to try and talk things out at least once. You know, like normal people do.

“And with that *huff* I’m up one.” Vergil announces through labored breaths as he tries to steady himself on his knees, using Yamato as a crutch. Dante lies flat on his back, giving his body time to seal his cuts and to catch his breath. He probably could have won this one if he wasn’t letting his mind wander so much, but this idea refuses to leave his brain. “What’s the matter?”

“Huh?” Still lacking the energy to actually sit up, Dante rolls over on his side to face his brother.

“You aren’t going to try and dispute my lead?” He asks, letting himself fall back once he realizes Dante isn’t getting up any time soon. “Like you always do?”

“You know what?” Dante grunts as he rolls over onto his back again. “I think I’ll let you have this one.” Dante pulls his arms up to cushion his head from the hard packed, blood stained soil of hell as he looks up into the gray sunless sky. It was almost a shame they had to chop the qliphoth down so soon, it was the only thing that actually caught his attention in these sprawling hell plains.

“What?” Oh, here he goes. “What do you mean you’ll let me have this one?!” Within seconds after their most recent clash, Vergil is suddenly back on his feet and ready for round… whatever they’re on. Dante’s completely lost track of time down here, the only clue as to how long they’ve been in hell is measured in how tattered and filthy they’ve become. Vergil’s hair has become far too long to keep swept back and Dante’s growing a beard thick enough for him to be mistaken for Santa Claus. While he doesn’t have an exact date, he can tell he’s been down here for far too long, and all that time was spent fighting his long lost brother.

“I mean you win. Congratulations.” Dante clicks his boots together, too tired to pull his arms into applause. “Now give me five more minutes. I’m trying to think.” With nothing to look at in the endlessly rolling skies, Dante tries to listen in to the ambiance around him. Other than the low eerie droning that always seems to surround them and their labored breathing, there isn’t much to listen to either. It’s been awhile since he let things get this quiet, leaving him with nothing but his thoughts, but this time is different. He isn’t left to berate himself over mistakes he made in the past anymore.

Now all he can do is plan out his future.

“What are you trying to do?!” Vergil demands, pulling Dante from his thoughts. While Dante is still lying on the ground and resting, Vergil is now hovering around Dante anxiously with Yamato drawn and held high. “Is this some kind of trick you’ve devised to make me drop my guard?”

“Nope!” Dante simply responds, not even bothering to face him as he says it. “I just want some time to think, and I need you off my back for a moment.” His comment earns him another few seconds of silence. When that silence stretches on for a little too long, Dante turns to watch his brother.

Vergil seems completely dumbfounded by Dante’s words. He’s stopped his pacing, Yamato hangs loose in his grip, Dante can almost see the gears working in his head as he processes this information. Dante thinks a full minute passes before Vergil regains his composure and retorts.

“Since when did _you_ think?” Dante releases an insulted gasp and puts a hand to his chest.

“You wound me brother.” He whines, trying to load it with as much hurt as possible. “You’re not calling your dear little brother _stupid,_ are you?” When Dante sits up to face him, Vergil takes on a fighting stance once more, ready to counter him when he inevitably rises to fight again, but when Dante doesn’t bother to stand up, his stance falters again. “The entirety of Temen ni gru was a puzzle gauntlet! Do you think I just brute forced my way through the whole thing?”

“You sure took your time getting up.” With the look Dante throws him, Vergil readies himself again for retaliation, but Dante still refuses to settle things.

“I can’t believe this!” Dante throws his hands up before pushing himself off the ground and staring Vergil down. “Whatever, I’m gonna go for a walk.” And with that, Dante turns around and starts walking in the opposite direction of Virgil.

“Where are you going?!” Vergil calls out, though he doesn’t move to follow him. “Come back here so I can further cement my lead!”

“I don’t feel like it.” Dante simply responds, not slowing his pace. “Maybe later.” Dante doesn’t turn to look at him, but he can perfectly picture Vergil’s restrained and calm demeanor crumble away as he walks off. When he hears his boots scuff the ground as he chases after him, Dante smiles to himself as he takes the bait.

“Where are you going?” Vergil repeats his question as he moves past Dante and stops in front of him, pressing his sheathed sword against his chest to keep him from walking off.

“I dunno.” Dante shrugs, ducking under the blade and pressing forward. “Maybe if we keep walking we’ll find someplace less boring.” He turns to face his brother and finally sees Vergil’s disgruntled face in all its glory. To see confusion and doubt in a face that was almost always focused and stoic makes this dumb idea worth it already. “Come on, family hiking trip! Let’s go!” Dante turns his back once more, expecting Vergil to follow. Before he can take another step forward he hears something cut through the air and ducks down in time to have Vergil’s saya fly harmlessly over his head.

“Enough of this foolishness!” Vergil commands as Dante turns to stare him down. “I don’t know what kind of game you’re playing, but I’ll have no part in it. Now take up your sword!”

“No!” Dante insists, trying his hardest to resist the urge to simply beat some sense back into Vergil. He’s already gotten him to break down a little bit, he’s committed to this now. “I don’t want to fight right now.” This isn’t too big of an ask, is it? They’ve been at this for months, hell maybe even a _year_ with the only thing pulling them away from their fights being the stray demons who try to ambush them. It’s not that big of an ask, which is why Dante is shocked to see Vergil wear an expression of genuine hurt.

“Why not?” Ever since they were separated, Dante’s only seen Vergil in short bursts after spending decades believing he was dead. He knows he was in hiding like him from the time they ran to their final showdown at Temen ni gru, but what happened to him in all the years since is a complete mystery to him. Because of this, the only memories he really has of Vergil were from early childhood and their late teens. In that short time they’ve spent together, Dante’s always noted Vergil’s icy blue eyes, as cold and piercing as the blade he was bestowed. Which is why when he saw that ice melt and go watery, some long forgotten instinct to appease Vergil kicked in from long forgotten memories of hitting his bigger brother and trying to keep him from tattling on him to mom.

Oof. And here he goes, starting his own water works.

“Look, Vergil.” Dante puts his hands up as he steps forward. “How long have we been doing this? How long have _you_ been doing this? I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to spend the rest of my life fighting you.” That last sentence almost makes Vergil flinch and Dante quickly rushes to diffuse the situation. “Come on man, you have to have some kind of hobby other than plotting your next grab for power and fighting me, Right?”

“O-of course I do.” Vergil sputters as he lets Yamato rest by his side, but it’s still clear to Dante that he’s on the defensive now. Dante rests his hands on his hip as he waits for Vergil to continue. “I’ve always had an interest in poetry.”

“Poetry! There you go!” Dante claps, glad to finally be getting somewhere. “And how long have you been reading?”

“I…” Vergil pauses as he thinks it over. “...stopped reading until recently.”

“You mean until that stupid sword was taken away from you and fighting wasn’t an option anymore.” Dante isn’t sure if he should be relieved or worried that Vergil’s expression freezes back into its usual, statuesque facade.

“Enough of this.” Vergil shakes his head and ties the Yamato back to his hip. “If you insist on postponing our rematch, then fine. Let’s go for a walk, but I will not have you trying to toy with me the whole way.”

“Aw come on!” Dante whines. “I’m not trying to mess wit-”

“I will not hear another word from you for the next hour.” Vergil states. “Try and play your childish games again and your little ‘truce’ is over and we get back to business.” Dante opens his mouth to argue, but when Vergil’s grip tightens on the Yamato, he sucks it back in and holds his hands up in defeat. Dante steps back and lets Vergil take the lead, following close behind him.

So much for trying to get him to open up. If anything, his experiment has only shoved the stick in Vergil’s ass even higher. He always was a stubborn bastard, but his first try had already yielded some bizarre results. This poor guy really did do nothing but fight and get stronger, seeing everything else as a distraction. A small part of him was tempted to take his stupid sword and split him apart again just to get V back. At least he was willing to talk things through.

Vergil remembers being V though, and the fact that Vergil even came down here with him at all was proof that he’s changed - if only slightly - for the better. It took multiple ass whooping's to stop him physically, and he’s sure it will take even more effort to make him see reason. He wasn’t one to back down from a challenge though. He’ll break through his guard eventually, though this might be his toughest fight yet.

\---

As the minutes crawl by, Vergil wishes for something to charge them and break the silence. Unfortunately, the local populace has elected to put as much distance between them as possible. As they should, he thinks, he is still their lord after all, it’s about time they’ve recognized him as such. Such a shame that they’re nowhere to be seen now, he needs something to distract him now that Dante is refusing to cooperate.

He throws a glance over his shoulder at his little brother, desperate to find a clue as to what he’s doing. He’s at least done as he was told and hasn’t spoken another word since they left. He has been agitating him with whistles and hums to fill the silence, but if Dante was left in complete silence for too long Vergil’s sure he’d explode.

During their walk, the scenery around them hasn’t changed at all. They walked past a large gash in the ground that was filled with fire, which was a nice distraction for a time. The low, eerie droning that permeated every inch of the field they picked for themselves was now replaced with sporadic shrieks and cries from unseen sources. Vergil’s spent more than enough time in the underworld to know there’s more to it than this, but they’re places he’d rather not go. What was the point in doing this?

He supposes the walk has given them both time to regain their strength. Now that he isn’t giving his all into every battle, he can finally acknowledge the aches and bruises that seem to fully comprise his body now. After dedicating a portion of his power to healing these dull pains, the uncomfortable length of his hair also became apparent. It would take only a second to fix that, but drawing Yamato would most likely set Dante off on him again.

What was he planning, what was he trying to accomplish by doing this? If it was to regain his strength, he’ll be thoroughly disappointed to find that he’s recuperated too. Was he trying to come up with a new strategy to take his lead back? It would be much easier to form a battle plan while _in_ battle, analyzing his stances and attacks and planning accordingly. No matter how hard he tries, Vergil can’t think of any reason why Dante would stop fighting. Was it something he did? Did he do something wrong? There had to be something missing, but he can’t even begin to fathom what it could be.

“So I’ve been meaning to ask.” Vergil stops in his tracks and clicks Yamato out of its sheath in warning. “Hey, you said one hour. I’ve been keeping track and I’m taking the muzzle off now.” Vergil spins on his heels to face his brother, resisting the urge to skewer him on the spot. Dante’s clearly toying with him somehow and lashing out would be admitting defeat. He wasn’t going to let this buffoon fool him.

“You’ve already made it apparent you don’t know how to count.” Vergil snaps back, letting Yamato fall back to his hip. “Now unless you have something worthwhile to say, then please remain mute, I was actually starting to like it.”

“I know the important numbers.” Dante casually responds, shaking his head in dismissal of Vergil’s insults. “365 days in a year, $17.89 for a combination pizza from Ciacco Pizza with the tip, I owe Lady somewhere around 4 or 5 million dollars…” Dante falls silent for a moment and his smile falls. “...and it’s been 36 years since mom died.” Vergil doesn’t give Dante the time to blink before he has the scruff of his shirt in his hands and he pulls him close.

“I already told you, I want no part in this game of yours!” Vergil hisses through clenched teeth. “Are you testing my restraint? Waiting for me to snap and break our truce? I will not be toyed with, Dante.” Rather than shrink down at his demand, Dante reaches up and grips Vergil’s wrist.

“And _**I**_ already told _**you**_ I’m not messing with you!” Dante replies as he pulls Vergil’s hand away with a grunt. “I don’t know what you’ve been up to for the past 25 years but I’ve had nothing but time to think and berate myself over every little thing I did.”

“This is your worst joke yet.”

“Just shut up and listen for a minute!” Dante raises his voice to a tone Vergil rarely heard, one he only heard in his last moments on Temen ni gru and his last moments as Urizen. He doesn’t know how he got here, but Dante’s dropped his cheerful facade and is speaking with a level of seriousness he seemed to reserve only for him. “I spent two and a half decades believing I killed you, that I left you to rot down here instead of jumping after you. A few years after that, I saw what became of you and put you out of your misery.” Vergil manages to stifle the gasp that tries to escape him at the mention of their second encounter. He thought he had purged his nightmares along with his familiars when he reformed, but evidently there are still some memories he couldn’t shed. “I spent every year after that believing I had left you to become Mundus’s slave, the only thing keeping me afloat was the fact that I saved you from that. So when Mr. Mysterious V came waltzing in in his stupid corset, telling me that you were alive the whole time, slowly crumbling away, I nearly snapped!”

Vergil wants to interject, to make him stop with some sort of cruel remark about how he’s never heard him say so much in such a short time, but he doesn’t trust himself to say anything without stuttering his words. It took a moment to place what he was feeling, but seeing Dante like this actually made him… scared. Whenever he got like this, it ended poorly for him, but he’s never gone on this long, they usually had their swords out by now, and that’s when it hits him. _This_ is what Dante was trying to do.

“I failed you twice already, but here you were again, raising another hell tower to end the world with and I had to stop it, **again!** ” Dante continues to rant, his voice shifting towards the demonic as the Dante that was familiar to Vergil quickly faded away. “I didn’t think I could go through with it a third time, but I did what I had to. And just when I was preparing to shoulder even more guilt, here you were again!” Dante gestures towards Vergil with disdain. “Twenty five years, multiple transformations, and you were **still** just as stubborn as you always were! You like to think of yourself as the smart one, but you’re the one who keeps repeating the same stupid damn mistakes over and over!”

Dante is left gasping for breath after running on for what felt like an hour for the both of them. Dante tries to compose himself, smothering the demon within him and slowing his breathing. Vergil is left to recompose himself as well, shaken by what his brother said. Dante had called the truce to air all of this out, knowing that he wouldn’t get the chance to otherwise. It was shockingly mature of him, and while he practically made it his goal to hold himself higher than his little brother, Vergil had to acknowledge that Dante made many good points.

Dante has clearly winded himself more than he expected and he sits down onto the rough soil, patting the ground next to him. “Sit your ass down, we’re going to talk things through like normal people do.”

“W-we aren’t necessarily nor-”

“ **Sit down!** ” A part of Vergil wants to refuse the order, to remain standing over his brother while he speaks, but he’s intrigued with this new Dante he’s just met. Vergil walks over and sits cross legged next to his brother who visually deflates with relief as he does. “Thank you.” Dante sighs. “You were going to say something?”

“We aren’t necessarily normal people.” Vergil repeats.

“Nice observation Captain Obvious.” Dante falls back into a grin Vergil is familiar with and relaxes a bit more, in spite of the fact that Dante clearly just insulted him. “I seem to surround myself with crazies, but everyone else has things under control, so it’s about time we try to figure things out too.”

“So does that mean that the fighting is over? That you’re just… done?”

“Is that why you look like a kicked puppy?” Dante scoffs, causing Vergil to bristle. Before he gets a chance to make a comeback, Dante continues. “Trust me, I’m sure we’ll be back to business as usual soon. You’ll do something stupid eventually and i’ll get right back to kicking your ass.” Dante breaks out into another laugh as Vergil calms down after hearing confirmation that their battle would continue. Now that he knows this though, he needs to address something.

“There you go again, calling me the stupid one.” Vergil leans forward, trying to regain some form of dominance over the conversation. “You’ve made some wild claims before, and as much as it pains me to say it, we’re on equal footing strength wise, but you really think _you’re_ smarter than _me?_ Foolishness.” He leers down at his younger brother, letting as much disdain linger in his final word before he leans back with a smirk. But rather than shrink away, Dante breaks into a smug grin as he prepares to absolutely destroy Vergil’s every being with one simple question.

“How many times have you tried to obtain ultimate power?” Now Dante leans forward, crossing his arms as he retains his smug look. “How many times have you put the whole world at risk for your own gain?”

“Countless times.” Vergil responds, unsure of where he’s going with this and trying his best not to lean back from his brother.

“And how many times did you succeed?” Dante doesn’t let Vergil out of his sight, he sits there and takes in every shift in his composure as the question sets in. Anyone else would have said nothing changed, but Dante’s been around Virgil long enough now to know his tells, the little cracks in his poker face. His brow furrows enough to form creases on his forehead, his scowl is deeper than the one he normally wears, he digs his nails into the leather of his gloves. He rarely ever shows it, but it’s clear that he’s managed to get under his skin. Vergil seems to make a quick recovery, however.

“Just once.” He says with a smirk. “I ate the fruit of the qliphoth and became stronger than I ever could have dreamed.” Now Vergil crosses his arms and leans forward, nearly butting heads with Dante as he believes he just trumped his brother.

“Tch, alright fine. I’ll give you that one.” Dante falls back, putting his hands up and Vergil can’t help but gloat. “But seriously, where did you even come up with the idea?”

“Hmm?”

“I mean, your last ‘big plan’ was to just summon a giant demon tower and hope I show up with everything you needed to open a portal to hell. This time, there were so many moving parts and what must have been years of planning.”

“I… don’t kn-”

“Splitting your soul apart to buy yourself extra time to get the fruit going, then leading us all into Urizen’s grasp to take us out long enough to grow the qliphoth. Then once everything was ready, you got us all back together again, helped us face off against Urizen after he ate the fruit, and then rejoined him, becoming even stronger than before!” Dante scratches his head as he tries to wrap his head around the whole plot. “Both of your halves were working together the whole time, and both of you fooled us! After your last 'plan' went so wrong, I never would have thought that you’d come up with something this crazy!”

Dante looks back up to his brother, waiting for him to fill in the blanks and detail his plan. Instead, Vergil’s whole face is scrunched up in thought and confusion.

“I… didn’t plan any of that.” He finally admits in a whisper that Dante barely catches. “Did… did you just come up with that, just now?”

“Well the pieces were all there, I just got to work putting them… wait.” Dante stops and stares his brother down for a moment, analyzing what he can. “Holy shit… None of that was part of the plan?!” Vergil doesn’t shrink back or try to hide his shame, he would never admit defeat like that to anyone, but he doesn’t defend himself either. “Wait wait wait! So what was the plan then?!”

“Remove my weaker half and eat the fruit.” Vergil mumbles. Dante leans forward, waiting for him to continue. “That was it.” He says a bit more loudly, causing Dante to back off a bit.

“I take it back then.” Dante says with a sigh. “Every single grand scheme you’ve come up with wasn’t thought out in the slightest. Even Nero was a complete accident you forgot about until it came back to bite you in the ass.”

“And what have _you_ accomplished?!” Vergil snaps back, refusing to take any of this sitting down. “I never backed down from a fight, never refused a challenge! I may not have gone through every potential detail or plotted out my every move, but I was motivated enough to take what I wanted no matter the cost! Thirty six years, and I finally got the power I wanted. What have you accomplished?”

“Man, where to start.” Dante leans back and lounges out on the rocky soil below him. “I saved the world from you after your first big power grab.”

“Whatever.”

“I established my own business.”

“Which you can’t even afford to run.”

“Killed the demon lord Mundus.” Vergil stops himself from spitting out another dismissal and Dante sits back up. “Yeah, don’t have a counter for that one, do ya.” Virgil’s mask starts to slip again and Dante tries to find a way to calm him down enough to keep things from getting physical again, but Vergil is the first one to react.

“How do you keep doing this?!” He demands, pushing himself to his feet, but notably keeping his hands free from Yamato’s hilt. “I was on the run for years! There wasn’t a single day where I was free to relax or sleep soundly! I did whatever I could to get stronger, to claw my way to the top of the food chain so I could close my eyes without worrying I would never open them back up! When I plummeted into the depths of hell all those years ago, I was ready to slaughter everything in my path until I drew my last breath…”

“Your rampage didn't last long I assume.” Dante mumbles, trying to lighten the mood, but the cold glare Vergil shoots his way smothers any future attempts.

“The first thing I ran into down here was Mundus, and you already saw what became of me as his thrall.” Vergil’s expression tightens as he says this, and Dante feels a flash of worry when he sees him shiver.

“Do you remember our meeting around that time?” Dante asks, still cautious after his last interruption, but Vergil doesn’t lash out at him this time.

“I tried to cast all my memories of that time away with V, and while I succeeded in many places, I haven’t been able to shake the pain and fear I felt back then.” Vergil shudders. “But seeing you on Mallet Island branded itself in my mind. The memory still lingers, and reminiscing on it fills my veins with fire as I remember what was done to me, but I also feel some sense of bitter-sweetness to it. Seeing you again, seeing your amulet… I felt shame and contempt with every time I lost to you, but I also felt content, knowing that Sparda’s legacy was still strong, stronger than Mundus.” With a catch of his breath, Virgil seems to come back to his senses and returns to the present, leaving the painful memories behind.

“What happened after our final battle?” Dante asks in a solemn tone. This is painful for Vergil, but also himself. Years of guilt that wasted away at him because he believed he killed him on that island. Knowing he was alive alleviated a lot of that guilt, but he needed to know what he left him with. He needed to know what he was responsible for.

“I awoke back here in the underworld, Mundus’s influence gone, but his armor was still grafted to my body.” Vergil says, shuddering as he falls back onto his memories of the past. “The poison that it fed my body was a source of power, it gave me the strength I needed to survive down here, but after everything that happened, I refused to wear it. I tore it from my body, piece by piece, tearing away my flesh with each section. Say what you want about my need for power, but I wasn’t going to accept it from that devil, I would forge my own strength.” Vergil relaxes again as he casts those thoughts away once more. “My time down here is thankfully long gone, reduced to ash along my familiars. The only lucid memory I have left of those years was when I found Yamato again.”

The two fall silent as they go through the events that followed his return to the human world. Dante almost wishes Vergil still had stories to tell, to have something concrete to blame himself for. “You never answered my original question.”

“Huh?” Dante snaps out of it as Vergil returns to his regular, reserved self.

“How did you manage to match me in strength after everything I went through?” Vergil repeats, almost wincing as he all but admits that Dante was stronger than him. “I ate the fruit of the qliphoth, and even after I became whole again, I couldn’t keep you down. How?”

Dante shakes his head. “the one lesson you never seem to learn.” Dante huffs as he allows himself to relax again after the topic of Vergil’s long time away from home passes. “Even your hot headed kid managed to figure out the secret and beat your ass with it too!”

“Just tell me!” Vergil demands.

“I already did.” Dante waves him off, but Vergil takes another step forward and stares him down. “Do you really need me to spell it out for you?” Vergil continues to leer down at him with a gaze which Dante is sure would kill any normal man. “Hell, it’s practically your catchphrase! You need something worth fighting for, something to motivate you!”

“I had something worth fighting for!” Vergil snaps back, growing more furious. “I was fighting to ensure I’d never feel helpless again! Was that not enough? Was that not enough motivation?!”

“ _ **Someone**_ to fight for.” Dante corrects himself. “Someone that matters, someone you’re willing to fight like hell to protect.”

“Then what about Temen ni gru?!” Vergil counters. “You had no one then! You climbed the tower alone like I did!”

“I had you.” Dante doesn’t raise his voice to match Vergil’s as he says this, but Vergil hears him loud and clear.

“What?!”

“I was fighting to protect you.” Dante repeats. “I was trying to stop you, to make you see reason, to keep you from doing something you'd regret. If only I thought to do _this_ back then, maybe I could have saved you from Mundus all those years ago. Guess I _am_ the stupid one.” Dante falls silent again, but he’s able to hold onto his smile when he sees Vergil take a seat in front of him again.

“What about when I was gone?” Vergil asks, all hostility in his voice gone.

“Well you’ve met all of them already, right?” Dante chuckles. “Lady, Trish, my little nephew Nero. All of them would fight by my side and share a drink with me when we’re done. I didn’t need any demonic fruit or ancient sword to win my battles, knowing that failure meant all of them would be next was what pushed me to break my limits.”

“How did you even allow yourself to get so close to them after everything we lost?” Vergil asks, and Dante winces. It’s a question he’s asked himself a few times after losing him. The pain of losing a loved one was worse than any cut from a sword, but the connection you shared with someone like that, with family, was worth any potential heartbreak.

“Not like I had a choice in the matter.” Dante sighs. “Lady made it impossible to ignore her, Trish tagged along after the whole Mallet island business, and seeing Nero run around with your sword, spitting out catchphrases which were eerily close to your own, he was the closest thing I had to getting you back.”

“I don’t think there’s anyone who would be willing to fight for me.” Vergil comments hardheartedly.

“Oh they don’t have to like you.” Dante is quick to assure him. “The first time I met Lady, she shot me in the face, and I already told you I owe her more than I could ever make. And besides, you got me don’t you?”

“Hmm?”

“I finally got my brother back! If some big demon hotshot tried to separate us, he’d be dead before he could finish his evil monologue.” Vergil breaks out in a smirk and lets out a satisfied grunt hearing that. “And I know you’d never say it out loud, but I know you’d do the same for me. Not to mention, you got someone waiting for you back up there.” Dante reminds Vergil, pointing up towards the endless gray sky.

“What do you mean?” Vergil asks, throwing a glance upwards.

“Nero still owes you a rematch. You don’t want to disappoint him, do you?”

“Oh no.” Vergil says, cracking his fingers one by one. “I wouldn’t dream of letting that brat get away with the last laugh.”

“Then keep fighting, improve yourself, and when things get dark, remember the family you’ve got at home and keep pushing forward for their sake.” Dante wasn’t really one for heartfelt speeches, but he goes ahead and pats himself on the back for that one. He’s only got his brother as an audience but seeing him smile, not just smirk but full on smile at his words is proof enough that this talk was a complete success.

“Does that really apply if the reason I want to see you two again is to beat you down and wipe the floor with you?” Vergil chides, and Dante breaks into another bout of laughter.

“You said it yourself, we’re not normal.” He sighs. “But I guess beating the senses back into each other is the Sparda family way. I’m sure your boy would be thrilled to see the both of us again, even if it means he’ll be getting in between our little rivalry.”

Vergil leans back and lies on the ground in front of Dante, reeling from the emotional back and forth of the conversation. Dante was the last person he would have expected to pull something like this, but that just goes to show how little he actually knew of his brother. They had a lot of catching up to do, and while their conversation was painful at times, the both of them learned quite a bit. Vergil tries to follow in Dante’s footsteps and lets himself lie back and rest, it’s been so long since he’s allowed himself to. He hears Dante shift around on the ground and sit up and as soon as he questions why, something skids up from behind him. Vergil’s eyes snap open and he sits up, hand reaching for the Yamato, before a deafening bang sounds out in front of him.

Blood splatters against the back of Vergil’s neck and hair as smoke bellows out of the barrel of Dante’s shotgun. Turning around, Vergil finds a mess of gore behind him seemingly sprouting from nothing until scales start to form around the wound, slowly revealing the demon who snuck up on him. A demon with some sort of camouflage?

“Thought I felt something watching us.” Dante comments, breaking open his shotgun and loading in a new shell. Vergil stands up, cursing himself for letting something get that close to him, when he notices movement in the distance.

“Seems like we have an audience.” Vergil stands ready with his hand on the hilt of Yamato, ready to draw the moment one of the demons makes a charge. With a grunt, Dante pushes himself up and summons his sword to his hand, trying to identify every threat that surrounds them. Both of the brothers naturally place their backs to each other, confident the other can keep them safe.

“Well, good talk Vergil. Now it’s time to pick up where we left off, just like you wanted.” Dante comments, idly swinging his sword around while waiting for his opponents to make the first move.

“Dante?” Vergil asks as the chameleon demons inch closer. “Any chance we could maybe do this again? Take a break and just talk?”

“I thought I was going to have to beg you to give this a second chance!” Dante says, gripping his sword a bit tighter as the first demons make their charge. “Later though, I’m taking my lead back!”

“After you gave me the secret to your source of power, I'd like to see you try!” Vergil teases, clicking Yamato out of its sheath. Without another word, the brothers charge forward, swords held high as they clash with the demons who stand before them. As their numbers dwindle and they make their retreat, the brothers eventually turn their swords on each other, picking up where they left off earlier that day. Both now fought with renewed vigor and determination, Dante fighting to one up his brother and return safely to the family he built in the human world, and Vergil fighting to better himself to guarantee his rematch with his son ended with him as the clear winner. As the battle continues, Vergil dedicates some time to thinking about what he would talk about next. The Dante in front of him now was nothing like the image he had built of him in his head, and he wants to get to know more about this one. Not to mention, he had to find some way to get back at this fool for calling him an idiot.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!
> 
> I'm still getting used to uploading these for an actual audience, but I had a lot of fun writing this and I hope you had fun reading. I fell in love with this series back in 2016 when I got the HD collection as a gift and was blown away by how amazing DMC5 was. When I had completed all the games, I of course came here to read the fics that were posted and my love for this series grew deeper. Shout out's to TheWritingSquid for the amazing stories you've written which inspired me to make my next fic about this series I love so much.


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